CNN analysis: Some college athletes play like adults, read like 5th-graders

[JaxcockFL]

http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/07/us/nca...html?hpt=hp_t1

CNN) -- Early in her career as a learning specialist, Mary Willingham was in her office when a basketball player at the University of North Carolina walked in looking for help with his classwork.
He couldn't read or write.
"And I kind of panicked. What do you do with that?" she said, recalling the meeting.
Willingham's job was to help athletes who weren't quite ready academically for the work required at UNC at Chapel Hill, one of the country's top public universities.
But she was shocked that one couldn't read. And then she found he was not an anomaly.
Soon, she'd meet a student-athlete who couldn't read multisyllabic words. She had to teach him to sound out Wis-con-sin, as kids do in elementary school.
And then another came with this request: "If I could teach him to read well enough so he could read about himself in the news, because that was something really important to him," Willingham said.

[Lonnie]

Originally Posted by JaxcockFL

http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/07/us/nca...html?hpt=hp_t1

This tweet doesn't make us look good.

Sara GanimVerified account
‏@sganim
One school just never responded to our request: University of South Carolina

Here's the link to the data.

http://www.cnn.com/interactive/2014/...res/index.html

[Travelin]

Originally Posted by Lonnie

This tweet doesn't make us look good.



Here's the link to the data.

http://www.cnn.com/interactive/2014/...res/index.html

How can they say we didn't respond when they quoted a Prof from USC in the original story?

"It is in many ways immoral for the university to even admit that student," said Dr. Richard M. Southall, director of the College Sport Research Institute and a professor at the University of South Carolina

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/01/07/us...html?hpt=hp_t1

[Cockypantherfan]

I'm not the least bit surprised... you just have to listen to them answer some questions from a reporter to know that a lot of college athletes can't read or speak at a very high level.

[Lalli25]

As a HS special education teacher, I know that many high school graduates without special needs can not read above an eight grade level. It is not an athlete problem but an entire generation's problem. Also too often these athletes have special needs and are not being treated when in lower education levels.

Don't get me wrong, too many athletes are slipping through the cracks and we need to focus on helping them, not just using them. I have a bigger problem with the universities not putting these players on track to actually graduate but instead just put them in classes to keep their GPA high enough to play. That is the problem with college athletics.

[Lonnie]

For those that are interested, here's Clemson's raw data

I don't think we have any room to throw stones, but check out the 220 verbal SAT. I think we just found Spiller's score.... (Sorry about the smack)

[2000grad]

Lonnie, I thought everyone was too dumb to get in to Clemson. That is what I hear

[Lonnie]

Originally Posted by 2000grad

Lonnie, I thought everyone was too dumb to get in to Clemson. That is what I hear

Just our players. Theirs are freakin' Eisensteins...

[B-G]

I'm not shocked at all.

But hey, without them what am I supposed to do on Saturdays in the fall?

[kick_ball]

we just never answered a lot of other schools decline their request for info

[ucan'tlickourcocks]

I put most of the blame on the NCAA......

[bravecock524]

Originally Posted by ucan'tlickourcocks

I put most of the blame on the NCAA......

I put most of the blame on these kids parents.

[cockfight21]

Southall, hmmmm.... So it is immoral to admit a poor student. Is it also immoral to deny the same student access to higher education? I don't want to get into it, but these "academic" types are the first f@ckers to complain about lack of diversity, etc. Can't have it both ways.

[SwampFox]

Soon, she'd meet a student-athlete who couldn't read multisyllabic words.

Blame that on "whole language reading" where the students were not taught phonics, but were taught to recognize the entire word. Whole language is fine for languages where every word has it's own symbol (i.e Japanese or Chinese). But for languages like ours, phonics is how to teach people to read.

[Cockholio]

Probably not many schools in the country that don't have student athlete's with less than stellar scholastic skills, but what was going on at North Carolina was nothing short of an abomination.

[JaxcockFL]

Originally Posted by Cockholio

Probably not many schools in the country that don't have student athlete's with less than stellar scholastic skills, but what was going on at North Carolina was nothing short of an abomination.

The other thing about this is the disgusting method that they looked down their noses at everyone else while patting themselves on the back by doing it the "Carolina way." They graduated players that can't read lecturing about the "Carolina Way."

This could have been over with a while back, had UNC done what USC did when they were investigated by the NCAA and do a real thorough investigation to get to the bottom of it. They chose to cover up and use a PR firm.

[GapoGamecock51]

Originally Posted by SwampFox

Blame that on "whole language reading" where the students were not taught phonics, but were taught to recognize the entire word. Whole language is fine for languages where every word has it's own symbol (i.e Japanese or Chinese). But for languages like ours, phonics is how to teach people to read.

I can honestly say that, "Hooked On Phonics Worked For Me." I started on it in the early 90's...........It seems to me to be a tragic notion that a man can enter college without the ability to read or read at a necessary level.......It is an indictment of our own complacency in being dependent on government, and the state of public education.

As a side note, my wife told me today that compared to the math she took in the Philippines, going through math here in the U.S. with a young lady she tutors, were she to do it on her own, it would be a breeze for her. Take that as you will. But it seems sad.



Gapo

[Biocockanics]

wait wait wait

You mean to tell me that college athletes aren't academic all-stars?!?!?


this isn't news...it's why they have team tutors, MANY athletes are sub-par.
2.5 GPS shouldn't be a point of pride.

ever.

[McBrain]

This data doesn't surprise me too much. Realistically, what percentage of athletes from revenue producing sports will actually utilize their degrees when they graduate?

Let's be honest about this, we care about these people because of their athletic talent, not because of their test scores or GPAs.

Maybe I'm a bit cold about it, but I couldn't care less how these kids perform in the classroom as long as it's good enough for them to perform on the field/court.

Bash me if you want, everyone is entitled to an opinion. But I don't care for a minute how smart these guys are. Like my grandfather used to say, "The world needs ditch diggers, too.".

[TKE226]

this isnt anything new...